The New York Giants finished the last NFL season with a 6-10 record and, despite that, had many positives coming out. The Giants began free agency with -3 million dollars in cap. Second-year head coach Joe Judge and General Manager Dave Gettleman knew what they had to do to turn it around. Here I provided the grades for all the moves the Giants have made since free agency began.
WR Kenny Golladay
Grade: A
This will be Daniel Jones third year in the NFL; he has started a total of 26 games. Dating back to his time at Duke, Jones has yet to play with above-average talent and a sure wide receiver one. Being the leader of the 31st ranked offense after your second year doesn’t promise much for many. On the other hand, Jones had to deal with mediocre wide outplay and a below-average offensive line while being limited due to the offensive coordinator.
Jones throws at the second-highest rate when it comes to tight window passes, and it only fits that since 2018 Golladay has the second-highest contested catch rate. Jones has many question marks, and this signing wasn’t more for the Giants as a whole, whereas It was to see if Daniel Jones is the guy.
Kenny Golladay was viewed as the best free-agent wide receiver to hit the market and had several teams ringing his phone. Golladay fell in love with the culture coach Joe Judge is building and the promise Jones has shown. Many reference the Bills acquiring Stefon Diggs to support Josh Allen, so only time will tell if it’ll do the same for Jones.
CB Adoree Jackson
Grade: B+
The Tennessee Titans released Adoree Jackson, and this release was a surprise to many but was realistically a cap casualty. If the cap was regular and many teams had the usual amount of money, he most likely wouldn’t have been released, but similar to many, he was. The Giants had a cornerback carousel go along the opposite side of pro bowl corner James Bradberry.
That carousel consisted of Isaac Yiadom and Ryan Lewis, and a few others. Despite a horrendous 2020 defensive showing under Defensive coordinator James Betcher, Patrick Graham was able to turn things around completely. The Giants defense was ranked ninth in the NFL, which is excellent news considering the number of question marks.
Former first-round pick Adoree Jackson has shown promise in his career at times he was on the field. During the 2021 season, Jackson battled injury and even found himself on injured reserve at times. Adoree is fast and can keep up with quicker receivers downfield.
Since joining the league in 2017, Jackson has the second-highest forced completions on passes 20 yards or more downfield with 18. Now Adoree Jackson is no cornerback one, but that isn’t what he was brought to the team to do. He is now opposite a pro-bowl cornerback and will be under a great defensive coordinator.
TE Kyle Rudolph
Grade: A-
This signing couldn’t have been more perfect and can be argued to be the best one the Giants made this entire offseason. Joe Judge has built something in New York and stands on everything he said he would. Kyle Rudolph Is viewed as a highly upstanding guy and an extreme culture fit for this team. Rudolph does a lot for this team and affects more than many may think.
The obvious, Rudolph is a huge red zone threat for Jones as Jones dealt with problems when scoring inside the 20-yard line. Despite making the pro bowl, this might have been Evan Engram‘s worst Career year. This was also Engram’s first year playing in each game.
Engram dealt with drop problems the entire year and wasn’t the young weapon quarterback Daniel Jones needed him to be. Engram can learn a lot from Rudolph, from blocking to consistency when it comes to catching.
WR John Ross
Grade: B-
John Ross currently holds the 40-yard dash record, which helped him be drafted ninth overall in front of players like Patrick Mahomes and Deshaun Watson. Come to say, Ross’s time with the Bengals has not worked out from how he battled injuries and lack of production on the field.
The Giants didn’t sign Ross to be something he’s not, and this signing was a low-cost, high-value type of signing. He was signed to a one-year deal around two million to see if he could stay healthy and provide the severe threat as he was thought out to be.
With his blazing speed, Ross can be a lethal threat in the return game if being strictly a wide receiver doesn’t play out in his favor. Ross has a ton of potential. He has to tap into It, and that’s what the Giants hope to get out of it.
LB Reggie Ragland
Grade: B
Reggie Ragland has played for the Chiefs and the Lions and has given solid value to both whiles on the field. Ragland is a definite side-to-side linebacker that can provide great insurance for the lead backer Blake Martinez.
Martinez isn’t all that great in coverage but is an excellent run-stuffing linebacker finishing the year third in total tackles with 151. Ragland can also provide help on special teams, and being under a former special teams coach in Joe Judge, and we are sure he loves to have talent on that side of the game.
DE Ifeadi Odenigbo
Grade: B-
Ifeadi Odenigbo, former Viking, wasn’t brought in to be a dominant edge on this team. Edge is a significant need for the Giants, so they will take it wherever they can find help. Coincidently Odenigbo’s first game came against Giants quarterback Daniel Jones.
Odenigbo provides depth on this front four, seeming as though he has never been too dominant. The Giant’s front four totaled 40 sacks this past season, with no dominant edge threat.
Devontae Booker
Grade: D+
This was arguably one of Dave Gettleman’s most head-scratching moves this past free agency. Booker is a 29-year-old running back who has been on teams such as the Denver Broncos and Las Vegas Raiders. Booker never did anything too great as he was just the average running back.
Saquon has dealt with many injuries since joining the league in 2018. Due to that he needs to have a solid backup. Many would’ve preferred the Giants bring back running back Wayne Gallman, also known as Wayne Train. Gallman took the lead back roll toward the middle of this season and ran with it and at one time was pff’s highest-rated impact running back since taking his lead role.
Booker was overpaid, in many’s opinions, due to his limited role on the team. A preferred option could’ve also been to draft a running back in the later draft rounds.
LB Ryan Anderson
Grade: B-
Former Football Team player Ryan Anderson has a total of six career sacks and hasn’t been that much of a dominant edge. This signing was more of a lower-end signing more to provide special team support.
Anderson was used in coverage more this past season. Anderson found limited playing time due to how solid the football team’s defense was with newly acquired Chase Young. In a suitable scheme, Anderson is quite versatile and can be used efficiently. Patrick Graham has shown to improve players so this might be the right one for him.